On Friday, Gauteng authorities carried out a raid at SAFA House, linked to allegations involving Danny Jordaan.
Gauteng authorities raid SAFA House: Here’s what we know
Amid rising speculation, Gauteng’s serious commercial crime investigation team executed search and seizure warrants at the South African Football Association‘s (SAFA) office.
This action, according to police, was taken in response to allegations of fraud and theft totalling R1.3 million, purportedly committed by SAFA president Danny Jordaan from 2014 to 2018.
Accusations include the misuse of SAFA resources for personal gain, such as hiring a private security firm and a public relations company without the board’s authorisation, and violating SAFA statutes, leading to a substantial financial loss for the association.
During the raid, authorities confiscated a laptop, external hard drives, a USB, and various documents as part of their investigation into these serious allegations.
Danny Jordaan’s past with fraud allegations
Jordaan, a central figure in South African football, has a contentious history with fraud allegations, especially concerning his tenure as SAFA president.
In May 2023, forensic investigator Bart Henderson, with extensive experience in fraud examination, uncovered a series of governance, risk, compliance, and transactional issues that raised serious concerns.
“SAFA has had 9 CEOs in 14 years with an average tenure of 1 year 8 months, and 11 Vice Presidents in 10 years. SAFA currently has 47 paid National Executive Committee (NEC) members, against a global average of 15 – which is tantamount to a company, with a staff complement of 60 employees, having 47 directors,” he said.
The most notable scandal involved an alleged $10 million bribe to secure the 2010 FIFA World Cup hosting rights, pointing to systemic financial mismanagement within SAFA.
“In July 2019, SAFA’s auditors, PwC, resigned abruptly citing reputational and liability risk misalignment with SAFA. In addition, Jordaan (who was previously accused of rape) and its CFO, are currently facing serious criminal charges of theft, fraud and corruption brought against them by a SAFA NEC member. Yet no one – not Parliament, the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture, SAFA’s NEC, nor FIFA – has called for the SAFA leadership to either voluntarily step down, or face suspension pending the outcome of all charges and investigations,” Henderson explained in a petition.
Jordaan’s leadership has seen rapid turnover in key positions and questionable financial practices, significantly affecting soccer’s development in South Africa.
Following Henderson’s exposé, SAFA went on a media blitz, refuting the investigator’s claims and threatening to take legal action.x